The Hump Day Humor-Gram,  May 23, 2007        Issue Number 219
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1. What’s Blocking Your Sense of Ha Ha?  

Our last web poll (www.humouratwork.com) asked folks what was 
stopping them from using their humor at work. Here’s what 
people said: 	27% NOTHING, I’m having a blast!! 
       		26% Fear of not being funny 
			15% No time! 
			13% Fear of being politically incorrect 
			11% Our culture frowns on fun 
			 8% My boss! 
Here’s a thought on the “fear of not being funny” concern: Get
over it! That’s my crackerjack advice. Most humour in the 
workplace is spontaneous. And yes, sometimes it’s a hit, 
sometimes you’ll miss. I think we need to relax and get over 
ourselves. The risk of NO humor at work far outweighs the risk 
that occasionally people will look at us like we have a horn 
growing out of our forehead. We need to foster a psychologically 
safe workplace environment where people know it’s okay to be 
human and spontaneous and to laugh. And heck, if your attempt 
at humor goes over like a led puck, then just remember that
pros like Johnny Carson often got their biggest laughs after 
a joke bombed, so arm yourself with a few humorous recovery 
lines such as: “Well, I guess I’m just amusing myself at this 
point”  or “My three-year old son thought that was hilarious!”
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2. Mike's Fun at Work Tip

Lots of businesses have a “Customer Appreciation” day, so why 
not hold an “Employee Appreciation Day.” I think sometimes we 
inadvertently treat our customers better than we do our own 
colleagues, so an employee appreciation day can help remind 
managers to treat their employees like THEIR number one 
customer, and remind frontline employees to respect and 
recognize their teammates’ contributions. Make it fun (i.e.
no long, boring speeches from head office) and make it 
meaningful (i.e. no long, boring speeches from head office).  
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3. Deep Thought of the Week 

“After all is said and done. . . more is said than done.” 
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4. It's a Wacky, Wacky, World  

There’s exciting news for those of you that aren’t getting enough
coffee to make it through your workday morning . . .you can now
wash yourself with SHOWER SHOCK, a new soap that releases 
caffeine right through your skin and straight to the old 
bloodstream! No more waiting for the coffee pot! No more having 
to hook up that pesky caffeine I.V. drip! And if you are even more 
desperate, the Virginia-based company is also launching a 
caffeinated lip balm and caffeinated shower gel! 
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Copyright Michael Kerr, 2007. mike@mikekerr.com  www.mikekerr.com